Manage your energy with new resource guide

Yep, the heat is on. However, the cooler months are approaching and residents across the Commonwealth are on the hunt for ways to save money on their utility bills. By concentrating on the energy use in your household, you can save money while also improving your carbon footprint.

The Attorney General's office in Massachusetts serves up tips on ways to save on energy in their newly launched Energy Resource Guide.

Here are the highlights:

Discounted Utility Rates

Low-income customers could be eligible for discounted rates on their gas, electricity and telephone services. According to the MA Energy Resource Guide, the income of customers must meet eligibility requirements and receive some form of additional benefits, a few of the programs are as follows:

• Food Stamps
• Emergency Assistance to the Elderly, Disabled, and Children
• Head Start
• Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
• Mass Health/ Medicaid
  

Budget and Payment Plans

Budget and payment plans are extremely helpful for most, especially for those who live paycheck to paycheck. There is a free budget billling plan offered, which allows customers to spread their bill over a 12 month period. This period is interest free. A payment plan is offered as well. The payment plan is an arrangement between the company and the customer, allowing the customer to pay back the over-due amount in a certain amount of time.

Arrearage Management Programs

What are arrearage management programs? They are programs that can help customers come to terms with their overdue bill, and manage the bill effectively. The utility company will then set up an affordable payment, will not shut-off service, conduct a home energy audit, and forgive part of the debt if the payment plan is followed. The requirements for this program differ between utility companies, however, most likely the following requirements will be in place:

• Be eligible for fuel assistance
• Owe a minimum amount on overdue bills
• Agree to take part in budget counseling and energy efficiency program

Click here to download the Massachusetts Energy Resource Guide.

Foreclosure scam artists sweep the nation

The possibility of losing your home to foreclosure can be terrifying. The reality that scam artists are preying on the vulnerability of desperate homeowners is equally frightening.

The American Bankruptcy Institute Journal reports mom-and-pop scam operations are turning up across the U.S. What is a foreclosure scam? The Bankruptcy Foreclosure Scam Task Force defines a scam as "filing for bankruptcy to defraud creditors, without intending to comply with the requirements for obtaining a bankruptcy discharge or completing a repayment plan."

In 1998, an L.A. perpetrator was sentenced to six years in prison, and $71,000 in restitution for the involvement in 200 fraud bankruptcy filings. The scams don't stop in California. United States Trustee Program personnel report that these scams are "geographically widespread" and vary in methodology. Last week, the AGO settled with four people in Mass. who were previously charged with orchestrating foreclosure scams. The businesses had to pay restitution to all clients from whom they received money.

It is difficult to catch a scam before it is too late. Who should you turn to mortgage advice? The official blog of Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley advises contacting your lender directly, or choose to work with one of many local community organizations for free mortgage assistance.

Click here for a list of approved counseling agencies in Mass.

Attorney General's 2009 green calendar unveiled

Attorney General Martha Coakley's office unveils its 2009 green calendar online here.

The calendar features 12 months of helpful tips and information on issues such as: energy audits and weatherization, energy efficiency and seasonal tips, re-using and recycling, environmental health, and transportation alternatives.

The AGO also recently launched a new Web site section dedicated to Energy & Utilities, as a part of the office’s ongoing efforts to provide consumers with the tools and information to control their energy use.

Printed calendars here are available in limited quantities. The AGO will supply a maximum of two calendars per consumer request, and a maximum of 10 calendars for requests made on behalf of an agency or organization. To request a calendar, please email your name and mailing address to agoweb@state.ma.us.